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Head of Iraq's SWAT force arrested for graft

by (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Click For Restrictions. http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp | Thomson Reuters Foundation
Saturday, 12 March 2011 10:15 GMT

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. Click For Restrictions. http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp

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BAGHDAD, March 12 (Reuters) - The commander of Iraq&${esc.hash}39;s rapid response force was arrested after a set-up in which he was filmed taking a ${esc.dollar}50,000 bribe from a contractor, a member of Iraq&${esc.hash}39;s integrity panel said on Saturday.

Brigadier General Numan Dakhil was caught taking the bribe near Baghdad International airport on Thursday but escaped anti-corruption watchdog investigators after his guards beat them, Sabah al-Saedi, a member of the Integrity Committee, said.

Dakhil was later arrested on Friday.

"Eight of the Integrity Commission investigators seized him while he was receiving a sum from the contractor. The incident has been recorded with legal evidence," Saedi told Reuters.

"Brigadier General Numan Dakhil was arrested yesterday, he is under investigation now."

Corruption has been a major problem for Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and the country is ranked as one of the world&${esc.hash}39;s most corrupt nations in Transparency International&${esc.hash}39;s annual corruption perceptions index. (Reporting by Muhanad Mohammed; Editing by Serena Chaudhry and Louise Ireland)

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